For him, success was never a bad teacher, nor did it lead him to believe he could never lose. We have grown accustomed to his achievements, but he is well aware that coaches exist because of players, not the other way around. At the Kopaonik Business Forum, Svetislav Pešić, the head coach of the Serbian national basketball team, shared insights from his rich experience:
“There is no big difference between being a player or a coach—what matters is how dedicated you are to your work. The most beautiful moments of my career were as an active player, and believe me, I never dream about today’s games, but I still dream about playing. Imagine how I feel when I wake up?”
Pešić studied and graduated in economics, as did his wife. At the time, he says, basketball was not the business it is today.
“We had money, sometimes an apartment, but we also had to get an education.”
Interestingly, Pešić never actually wanted to become a coach—it happened almost by accident. While serving as general manager of the Bosna basketball club, he couldn’t find a replacement for a departing coach and had to step in himself:
“It wasn’t like today—one leaves, another arrives immediately. The club president told me, ‘Until you find someone, you’ll do it.’ But I only became a real coach when I realized that what I asked from my players, they actually accepted. And that was it.”
He says it was a privilege to coach players like Divac, Kukoč, Đorđević…
Despite his confidence, he insists he remains humble—a trait he attributes to his upbringing:
“That’s how I was raised. We from those regions are like that. There must be a balance between modesty and confidence. Being self-assured without proof is just boasting.”
A famous anecdote illustrates this. At his first press conference after becoming Germany’s head coach in 1987, he made a bold statement:
“In my cowboy English, I told the journalists that Germany would be European champions. The translator repeated my sentence and asked, ‘Is that what you meant to say?’ I confirmed. I knew they had potential, and they gave me the opportunity to become what I am today.”
On the other hand, Pešić admits that without his family’s support, he wouldn’t have succeeded:
“This job is 24/7—before, during, and after the game. It’s impossible to live the life of a coach without that support. When I retire, I will hang all my medals around Vera’s neck. I’ve always felt like I didn’t give enough to my family.”
For a top coach, the greatest achievement in life is not the championships or medals won, but the fact that he is still coaching, still passionate and dedicated to his work.
“There is no universal formula for victory and success—it all depends on people. Being a coach today is not the same as it was 30 years ago. Today, players expect you to provide solutions, while we used to be creative ourselves. A coach must never put himself ahead of the team, but players must know who is in charge and follow him. We have found that balance. We train basketball, but also interpersonal relationships. I work on that every day. Without it, there are no results. I don’t believe in motivation—only in discipline and responsibility.”
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Time for Change
Pešić emphasizes that Serbian basketball has come dangerously close to the American model, but that the key is to accept that others may be better at certain things.
“Imagine if we created a sports forum? A place to exchange experiences? I think it’s high time for change. Without that step, there will be no more medals—in fact, we won’t even qualify.”
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Source: Kurir, Foto: FIBA